Abstract

This thesis explores the utility of spatial analysis, specifically K-means spatial analysis, as a means for examining the physical manifestations of gender relationships. The contexts in which this was explored was two Eastern Thule houses, Staffe Island House 10 in Labrador and Tungafsivvik House 6 on Baffin Island. The Thule were chosen as a test case because of their ancestral and material culture relationship with the Inuit, a group for which information about gender roles and their relationship to material culture is abundant.

This research develops two possible models of gendered spatial relationships, and compares the results of the K-means analysis with those models to create a picture of Thule gender interactions.

The K-means analysis, and subsequent significance tests of the artifact clusters identified, indicated that no gender exclusive space were present hence workspace must have been shared. This has been interpreted to mean that Thule gender roles were cooperative, hence expressing gender difference was not as important as completing the tasks necessary for survival.

K-means is therefore a useful means of identifying gender space use patterns in households and can be applied widely on other sites for this same purpose.